


Training

by neuronary



Series: Azula Week 2020 [6]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Azula Week 2020, Child Abuse, Gen, Kid Fic, Ozai (Avatar) Being a Terrible Parent, Ursa (Avatar) Being A Terrible Parent
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-16
Updated: 2020-07-16
Packaged: 2021-03-04 21:22:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,068
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25313017
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/neuronary/pseuds/neuronary
Summary: Azula caught herself frowning. “I don’t see how it’s my fault that mother’s so oversensitive.”“She’s not being oversensitive!”Azula rolled her eyes.“Go away, Zuzu, I have training to catch up on.”---“My parents want me to make friends with you.”“We can be friends the day after tomorrow,” she decided. “I have training today.”---Azula, training throughout her childhood.
Relationships: Azula & Zuko (Avatar)
Series: Azula Week 2020 [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1803277
Comments: 12
Kudos: 210





	Training

**Author's Note:**

> Me, three weeks ago: I can totally do Azula Week on time! It'll be easy :)
> 
> Me, now:
> 
> \---
> 
> It's fifteen degrees of the sun to an hour, by the way. If you'll care to do the maths in the last section.
> 
> Hope you enjoy
> 
> ~Neu

Azula hadn’t even been  _ doing  _ anything, which was, obviously, enough to upset father, but mother really had no right to be so angry. She was always complaining about how much time she spent training, but Agni forbid Azula relax after her training.

Zuko glared at her from behind mother’s skirts, fingers curled up in them like a stupid scared  _ baby _ . Azula rubbed at the finger-shaped bruises her mother had left on her arm and glared right back. At least she was standing up straight and not cowering behind a grown-up.

(Okay, so maybe that was because her father was also mad at her, but still.)

After a few more minutes of yelling at each other, their parents finally noticed they were there for long enough to send them away. Azula rolled her eyes as she left and was treated to a ‘don’t be so rude’ from Ursa.

“You know this is your fault,” Zuko grumbled at her, the moment the doors shut behind them, “don’t you?”

Azula caught herself frowning. “I don’t see how it’s my fault that mother’s so oversensitive.”

“She’s not being oversensitive!”

Azula rolled her eyes.

“Go away, Zuzu, I have training to catch up on.”

\---

Azula didn’t feed the turtleducks anymore. Mother had banned her from the courtyard with their pond and she didn’t have time anyway. She had training to do, and school to keep up with.

(Okay, so maybe she did sometimes, but only because Mother had said not to.)

“Hey, Azula,” Ty Lee called, and Azula fought to keep her smile locked away in her head. Smiles were supposed to be scary, and she didn’t particularly want to scare Ty Lee, but happy-smiles were supposed to stay inside your head so that people didn’t think you were weak.

“Hi, Ty Lee,” she said, instead of smiling, and she didn’t look weak so it was good.

“This is Mai!” Ty Lee shoved - literally shoved; Azula liked Ty Lee but she had no concept of personal space - a girl at her.

“Hi,” said Mai, after a moment, sounding the way servants did when they got tired.

“Hello,” said Azula eventually. “I’m Princess Azula.” Should she bow? She did, just in case.

Mai bowed back, so it was fine. 

“My parents want me to make friends with you.”

This was the case with most of her classmates - in fact, Ty Lee was the only person in her class who hadn’t tried to suck up to her - but Azula appreciated her honesty. She told her as much, then mentally reviewed her schedule.

“We can be friends the day after tomorrow,” she decided. “I have training today.”

\---

Mother and Father were fighting again.

Azula ignored her mother’s cries of ‘it’s been sixty-five degrees’ because Mother was stupid and she wasn’t stopping until she could do it properly. She ran the kata again.

“ ...will continue until her performance is perfect! Perhaps, then…”

High kick, spin, stomp, hands out.

Fire spurted from Azula’s open palms like sunlight in summer and she felt untouchable for a half-moment.

Until something hit her shoulder and the world tilted into imbalance. She crashed to the ground and forgot to roll, breath knocked out of her, head spinning. Zuko stood over her, scrunched up face blotting out the sun. She didn’t bother with honour, or tradition, just let her own face twist like his and jabbed at his ankles. He collapsed beside her as she leapt to her feet. She took a deep breath in, stoking her inner flame-

“What on  _ earth _ do you think you’re doing?” long fingers wrapped around her arm and sharp nails dug in. Azula bit back her wince and flicked her hair out of her face.

“He attacked me. I was defending myself.” Her heart was thudding, loud and out of control, in her chest. 

Mother said something else, but she missed it in catching her breath. Then Father came over and they started arguing again. Azula rolled her eyes. She wanted to go back to training - she’d gotten her katas good enough to practice with fire now - but Mother still had her arm in a vice-like grip.

Zuko started to sniffle from the ground. He was such a baby.

“Get up, Zuzu,” she hissed. “Before Dad sees you. He’ll be mad.” He still didn’t get up straight away - Azula didn’t know why she bothered, she really didn’t - and when he did there were shiny tears on his cheeks. He kept sniffling, but it was quieter, and Dad wasn’t paying attention, so he’d be fine.

Azula twisted her arm a bit, trying to loosen her mother’s grip. It didn’t work. Her heart was starting to go back to normal, and as it slowed she found her body feeling heavier. She was tired, exhausted really. How long had Mother said she’d been training? Sixty-five degrees? Seventy?

“Brother, Lady Ursa, why so serious?”

Oh,  _ great _ .

Azula didn’t know if it was a good or a bad thing that Prince Iroh went completely ignored by her parents. He didn’t seem to mind too much, simply sighing and leaning down to check on Zuko.

Mother tugged on her arm, trying to gesture about… whatever it was she was saying. Azula stumbled into her side and she finally remembered her daughter was still there. Her grip loosened long enough for Azula to snatch her arm back, rubbing at it furiously to get the feeling back in her fingers.

They’d stopped arguing, at least.

“Prince Iroh,” her mother said, at last, bowing. “How lovely to see you. It would be wonderful to catch up. Tea, perhaps?”

“Ah, Princess Ursa, gracious as always,” her uncle agreed, switching to the language grown-ups spoke when they wanted nothing more than to never see each other again but had to spend time together anyway. “Will Prince Zuko be joining us? I have brought along some wonders from the Earth Kingdom I think may interest him.”

Azula ignored them, squeezing at her aching arm to get it back to normal. More conversation passed overhead as she tried to summon a flame.

“Azula,” her father snapped, suddenly, face cold with fury, “come along. I’ll be overseeing the rest of your training personally.”

The pain in her arm seemed to suddenly get worse.

Azula glanced at Zuko as she left. He was bouncing as he walked. He looked happy.

She would hate him for it later. For now, she had training.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! You can come find me on [tumblr](https://neuronary.tumblr.com) if you want to yell at me about avatar or my fics.
> 
> I'm also a beta reader and I'm currently taking on new fics. If you want me to beta your writing you can hit me up on [ff.net](https://www.fanfiction.net/beta/12983219/neuronary), DM me on tumblr, or message me on Discord (neuronary #7964).
> 
> And, to top everything off, I have an avatar discord server [memebenders](https://discord.gg/zrd3ryM), where we debate important topics such as 'did wan shi tong and koh have a messy break up?' and 'did sokka eat the rose in the southern raiders or did he just drop it?'


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